Mate of my Empty Heart
by Dr-I-Know-All
Summary: When Bella goes to save Edward in New Moon, the Volturi's fascination with her is more potent than simply her power. Turned by the three Volturi Kings, Bella takes to the vampiric lifestyle with ease and mates with Marcus. Marcus' heart, once closed off, is now with a mate who convinces him they must build a future away from the Volturi. Aro will not approve. UPDATED SPRADICALLY
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

* * *

"Now, Bella, what are we going to do with you?" Aro queried.

Edward made a defensive motion in my direction, but before I could blink there was a sound like impacting stones and the big burly vampire – Felix? – had grabbed him and was holding him back. I cocked my head, confused.

"Now now, Edward," Aro tutted, "humans are not permitted knowledge of our kind freely. You know we must either kill or change her."

"Can I ask a question?"

Aro beamed at me, now his sole focus. "But of course, dear Bella!"

"You read all of Edward's thoughts?" I murmured lowly, but I knew he could hear. Aro nodded eagerly. "Would he hate me if I became a vampire? I-I mean, I know that's why he left-"

There was an intake a breath.

"Bella, Edward would never-" Alice tried to say.

Aro interrupted, his eyes light. "Dear Bella, I'm afraid you misunderstand. Your Edward did not leave you because he was tired of you, or because of your request for immortality."

"I'm right here!" Edward growled fiercely at the Volturi leader. "I can answer for myself."

"Well?" I demanded, turning to him. "You're making no sense, so why not have someone else explain it to me? You leave, I try to move on, and then, the second you _think_ I die, you try to incite the wrath of violent, human-drinking vampires?"

"Bella, not here," Edward pleaded.

"Because they can't spare five minutes before I decide whether to join them or die?" I felt my jaw clenching before forcing myself to relax.

"You presume you have a choice."

The voice that spoke was soft and deep, like the sound of a orchestral cello solo. I turned to see the dark-haired brother – Marcus, who had previously been silent and vacant – fix his eyes on me. From the look on the guards' faces, they hadn't heard him speak in some time.

"You're right," I affirmed, " _I presume_ you want to either kill me, or collect me the way you wanted to collect Edward, and that I will get a say in it. You are saying you've already decided?"

"I have," Marcus aired easily, turning to his brothers. "Have you not?"

"Marcus, no," Edward growled. "It means nothing. It won't happen."

 _What was he thinking?_ I observed the quiet leader of the Volturi. He had no expression on his face except of utter sadness, and yet with his eyes now focused on the here and now he had a great more presence. Like a man wizened beyond years, with all the authourity it brings.

"Brother," Aro greeted happily, extending his hand to the man, who clasped it easily. They shared an intense look. "Fascinating."

"Well, that's not completely rude," I grumbled, earning a sharp look from Caius but a snort from Marcus.

Aro, however, looked mortified at my insinuation. "Oh, dear, is it really? My apologies, Bella, but it seems my brother's ability is useless on you as well."

"And Marcus can…?"

Marcus spoke this time. "I can see bonds, young one. I can see Edward's attachment – rather, obsession – with you," he sounded bitterly unhappy about it, "and Alice's love for you both as siblings. I cannot, however, see your side of it. Not your relationship with them, nor whether you would accept us as a coven should we change you."

"So … you want to change me?" I assessed. "But only if I'm no longer loyal to the Cullens?"

Marcus shook his head, but didn't explain. Instead, he rose from his throne – earning a startled look from Caius – and moved at human pace across the floor. While he didn't glide as cheerily as Aro, they seemed to have had the same lessons in presence and poise. His head remained fixed and his gait strong and refined. Yet his face was very mockery of the strength his stance portrayed.

"Tell me …" Marcus rose, gliding closer, "how did your ties with the Cullens weather the separation?"

I felt uncomfortable. "You're asking me to talk about my feelings? Now?"

Marcus nodded, observing me carefully. "It is relevant. No one will mind a small delay in our meal."

"I…Well…" I stammered, trying to collect my thoughts. "I'm here, aren't I?"

"Indeed," Marcus murmured, looking between her and Edward with a flicker. "Yet, as my brother informs me, Edward left with no uncertainty to his contempt for you after declaring his unfailing, eternal love. How does such betrayal sit in you? Would you still stand by him? What would you be willing to do for him, besides travel half the world?"

"Anyone would have come," I defended myself.

Marcus stepped closer, observing my facial features carefully. "You did not answer me."

He wanted to know how I felt about being betrayed? How I felt about Edward after all that? What I would be willing to do for him?

When I was still in my comatose state, I would have done anything to have Edward back. I felt I had deserved his leaving because I wasn't beautiful or smart or rich enough for someone like him. But after Jake had revived me … I didn't deserve that kind of brush off, even if he was too good for me. He had decided to be with me, even if it wasn't permanently, and so he should have broken it off amicably and not have left with his entire family like I was some kind of leper. I should have had a chance to move on by seeing him happy without me, a chance to say goodbye to the people who'd practically adopted her … he'd taken away anything that had given her life meaning.

"He took my life without killing me," I admitted, repressing the involuntary tremble trying to make its way into my voice. "If it was just him, it wouldn't have hurt as much … but I … I-I loved him, and loved being a part of a family."

A gasp. Alice and Edward were looking at me with a look of surprise and then pity.

"Bella," Alice murmured, "You have a family. Charlie..."

I shook my head. "I didn't even know him until I was grown up, Alice. I never had a regular family, one where I wasn't the mom, the cook, the counselor, … wh-where we could do something together, or even speak together a-about _anything_. I never had a _real_ family. And then you guys gave it to me, for a whole year. I should have been grateful for just having it that long, but … you guys never even said goodbye."

"You loved the entire coven, not just Edward," Marcus surmised. "And then, to have him say they were leaving, like every word of love from not only him but his family was a lie … it was like being thrust out of somewhere you'd been told you'd belonged."

I just nodded. The tears were coming, and I couldn't speak for fear of the crackle in my voice. I wished someone would speak, because without the distraction I was focusing on the cresting sadness I felt. As everyone seemed to consider my words, the tears started rolling and going down my cheek as I silently let them leak, not willing to be the loudest thing in the room.

"Does the love remain in your heart?" Marcus murmured aloud. He moved to cup my cheek in his cold, marbled hands and raised my face to look into his. His blackened eyes seemed filled with an old passion.

"I-I don't know," my words were stuttery and nervous. "I know it's silly."

I was blushing. Only Jacob had dared get so close over the past few months, and even then he had to try multiple times before I could let him near and with such intimacy. I was scared he would break me or I him. With a Volturi King, the closeness seemed more inquisitive. It didn't bother her, merely embarrassed her to be under the scrutiny.

"Perhaps I can prompt you in this regard," Marcus allowed, removing his hand from her cheek and approaching Edward. With hardly a blink, Felix had released Edward from his grip and Marcus had ripped off his arm with a terrible scream and a screech.

"NO!" I ran forward, kneeling next to my vampire-ex. "Edward, are you alright?"

He groaned, grabbing the stump where venom oozed.

I rounded on Marcus. "What was that for?!"

"A gift," Marcus expressed impassively, holding out Edward's arm. It was twitching frantically. "You can give it back to him, keep it until later, or burn it."

"Then I choose to give it back!" I hissed.

"Really?" Marcus asked, arching a brow. "He betrayed you. He kept you from your family. Surely a little vengeance would only constitute due justice."

"Bella's not like that!" Alice interjected forcefully, her eyes blazing. "She would never hurt anyone!"

"Ah, so it's nature and not the bond between you prompting the decision?" Marcus inquired, completely emotionless despite holding a twitching limb. "Do you wish to return it for him, or because of your sense of morality?"

I stood and grabbed at Edward's arm, fixing him with a glare when he wouldn't release it. "I'd like my gift," I said through gritted teeth.

"Once you tell me about your bond," Marcus persisted. "Do you still love this young vampire?"

"It doesn't matter!" My free arm was flung into the air passionately. "He doesn't love me, so I was moving on! I was trying to be happy!"

"Did you succeed?" Marcus interrupted my angry rant with his calm question.

"Excuse me?"

Marcus pulled on the arm we both held, drawing me closer. There was an intensity there, a quiet desperation. "Did you move on?"

My self-righteous stance died. I slumped, my eyes no longer meeting his. "No."

There was a moment of tension, and the arm in my hand lost its support and dropped to the ground, slipping from my grip as it did. I scrambled to catch it, but needed to pick it up off the floor. Marcus was giving me a resigned look.

"Very well, you may return it to him," Marcus waved his hand at the crippled and incapacitated Edward. "Brothers."

Marcus moved in a blur towards the throne room, a sudden swiftness earning yet another look from the many occupants in the room. With a touch of his hand, Aro seemed equal parts disturbed and intrigued.

"Guards, take Edward and Alice to another setting while he recovers," Aro ordered them firmly. "And fetch Edward something to drink corresponding to his diet, as I'm certain having his singer nearby has tormented him. Do not allow them to leave. Bella will remain here. Renata? Santiago? Stay with her. My brothers and I must confer in private regarding this."

All three brothers seemed to leave with a synchronized swish of their robes before disappearing behind the band of two large doors.

Alice had taken the arm from my and was trying to get it to fuse even mildly against Edward's skin. Neither spoke to me as they were led out of the room, which suited me. The tears I'd been shedding and hiding for a month since I'd let Jacob in were now streaming unconscionably down my face.

So instead of just standing around or talking to the guard, I simply went to the place on the great stone floor right in front of the raised dais, and sat down in front of the vampire king thrones. It felt kind of childish, sitting in front of there like I was in an elementary school assembly, but I wanted to be childish right now. I wanted to sit there, waiting for their verdict, alone.

No such luck. A female vampire, black-haired and fixed with classic Roman features, approached me and joined me on the ground. She sat like a lady, though, with both legs out to the side as opposed to cross-legged. Her cold hand fixed itself in place in front of me.

"Renata," she introduced.

I shook it, but remained silent.

She seemed confused. "Are you afraid?"

 _Damn my tears._ "No, I'm not afraid."

She looked on me thoughtfully. "You know, I believe you. But are you unafraid because you're sure Aro will change you, or because you just don't care what happens now?"

"Both." I shrugged. "Apparently, I have a gift and Aro will want it. But I also never cared about being eaten when I was with Edward, so why would I now?"

"You're kind of suicidal, kiddo," Renata told her with a grudging empathy. "Right, but suicidal."

"What do you do in the guard?" I asked, trying to divert her train of thought.

Luckily, Renata grinned at the switch. "I'm Aro's personal guard. You'll probably join me in my duties when they change you, if you're able to resist gifts like Jane's. It'd be nice to have another person to switch off with."

"What's your gift?"

Renata extended her hands with a mischievous grin and I saw the male vampire, Santiago, get thrown up against a wall, yelling, 'Hey!' She laughed at the vampire's face.

"I can push opponents away," Renata explained. "It's all physical shielding though, and Felix can do nearly as much with his brute strength. To be able to keep gifts from reaching Aro, that would be amazing!"

She was a genuinely content woman, and I found I liked her energy.

"I thought you should know," Renata said leaning forward, "Marcus never speaks, and most especially during judgements. This is the first time he's intervened in a while."

"Do you know why?" I asked, more confused by the black-haired vampire. "I mean, I know why he's quiet – Edward told me about his mate – but do you know why he's so into this?"

"He only ever intervenes when there's a mated pair involved," Renata said lowly. "We think it's because it reminds him of Didyme."

I blinked away tears. Did that mean Edward and her were mates? Like she had thought? Just like Esme and Carlisle? "Can you explain mates to me? No one ever really ... you know … told me."

Renata did explain. Turned out that vampires and werewolves were more similar than I knew, because becoming mated to a vampire was very similar to the way Jake had explained imprinting. Scent and then eye contact were the ways to determine one's mate, but unlike the Quileutes, love was not guaranteed. It was a primal mating, about status and passion rather than love. It actually made me feel better to know that the love would come naturally later, if at all.

"So, are Edward and I actually mates?" I asked, looking over to the door Edward left.

Renata snorted. "Did he tell you that?"

I thought back, trying to pick up on specific language. It occurred to me that the only time mates had been mentioned had been with the family, not with Edward and I. So I shook my head.

"Good, because it's only between vampires," Renata told me. "I've heard that Marcus can tell if humans would be mates when they change, but I think that's just speculation. He's kind of mysterious, you know? But vampires mate with each other, not humans."

My holey edges were shrinking, and anger became my next feeling. He had known about mates, had seen how happy his siblings had been, and had known he was only biding his time until his mate showed up. He had used her.

"I was never his forever," I sighed, this time knowing it to be true.

Renata looked torn between being comforting or realistic. "You could be once you've changed, if he's not already mated."

"He didn't even want to know," I lamented. "He kept refusing to change me, every time I asked. If that's how he'd know if I was his mate, wouldn't it have been worth it?"

Renata nodded. "It's the goal of every vampire to find a mate. The idea of spending eternity alone … I met Santiago two hundred years into my life, and when I met him all the years of useless wandering stopped haunting me. If he had thought you could be the one to take away that loneliness and wandering, I cannot imagine why he didn't turn you."

That made me pause.

"He did a number on you, didn't he?" Santiago whistled, now joining in the conversation. "I mean, he should have left your human ass alone, but to string you along like that all just sounds just plain cold-hearted. I mean, you aren't even scared to die, are you?"

"No," I admitted.

He shook his head. "Wow."

The doors to the throne room opened again. Renata jumped to her feet and, with Santiago, moved to stand by the wall. The three brothers walked through, looking like they all had come to an agreeable consensus. Aro in particular was bouncing with anticipation.

"Bella!" Aro greeted. Then, upon seeing my seated position, he looked on me with confusion. "Dear one, why are you on the floor?"

I shrugged. "I felt like it."

A blur of movement and then Marcus was on the bottom step of the dais, directly in front of me. His face reminded her of a psychologist, non-judgmental but analytical.

"If you sit like that, I will join you, _topolino._ "

I didn't want to force a king to be humbled to my level. I shrank under his gaze, staring at the floor. "Please don't."

"Then come," Marcus extended a hand, offering to lift me up. "You clearly need some modicum of comfort, and our motives will be served just as well in the red room."

I accepted his hand up and let him fold my own under his arm as he escorted me away. Aro and Cauis dismiss the guards before following Marcus and I from the room, and I was walked by the three Volturi kings to some deeper part of the castle. I stayed silent, unsure of what I was allowed to say before the decision was announced. Down two staircases, through darkened corridors with no sunlight, I was taken to a windowless chamber with a large steel table with a limb clamp on each corner. The outer rim of the room was a collection of seats, to watch whoever was bound to the table.

My heart sputtered and raced in my chest, and I was sure each king could hear it.

"You're going to change me."

My eyes fixed on Marcus' face, which was as impassive as ever.

"In moments," he affirmed. "However, we must have a conversation."

He lifted me effortlessly onto the metal table and I sat there, looking at the three kings.

"Ah, Bella," Aro looked on me happily. "You are going to be quite a great asset to our coven."

"Thank you," I murmured.

"Not so fast, Aro," Caius growled. His glaring eye was on me. "Isabella, being changed here in Volterra comes with conditions that the Cullens wouldn't understand. You are going to be confined to the castle for the first year of your change, and your first fifty years belong to us. You are ours."

"Fifty years?" I gaped. "I can't leave for fifty years?"

"You will not wish to," Marcus promised, his voice comforting. "You will be free to travel when you don't have guard duties and work … you will not be bored, _topolina_."

I bit my lip. "If I want to leave after that-"

"We will not force you to stay," Marcus comforted her. "However, I believe we will do everything we can to keep you."

Their darkened eyes observed my reaction.

I took a few deep breaths. "Any other conditions?"

"No," Aro affirmed. "However, dear Bella, we must ask who knows of your trip to see us before your change."

My eyes went wide. "You're _not_ going after my friends."

Caius' eyes narrowed. "So there are those who know."

"No!" I yelled, jumping off the table. "Eek!"

The jump didn't land and I toppled gracelessly. Marcus' arms caught me, and Aro chortled loudly at us. "Oh, dear Bella, I wondered if your clumsiness would make a final appearance."

"Don't kill them," I pleaded with him. "I left my father a note telling him I was leaving, but I didn't tell him where. He doesn't know about vampires, I never told him."

"Then what has you so concerned?" Aro asked.

I bit my lip. "I may need to call a friend when I wake up, to say goodbye."

"Does he know about us?" Caius demanded.

"I-I, er, well, I never said anything-"

"So yes," Caius growled. He was irate. "Who?"

"They're not human," I tried to defend myself.

"Not human?!" Caius roared.

"Brother, calm yourself," Aro placated kindly. "Bella, are you referring to the boy in dear Alice's memories? The wolf?"

Marcus looked down at me, his eyes finally showing emotion. It was concern. "Werewolves?"

"Shapeshifters," Aro dismissed the concern.

"Yes, it's him," I admitted. "Please, if I don't return he'll come to Italy to find me. He needs to hear from me."

Aro gave me a sweet smile. "Dear Bella, we have no intention of denying you that privilege. Just be aware that when you call, if you fail to assure him there is no reason to stir up trouble we will be forced to stop him."

The dark look in Aro's eyes mixed with Caius' murderous expression convinced me that they were serious. I nodded vigorously.

"Excellent!" Aro clapped. "Well, Bella, are you ready?"

I tried to climb back onto the table. When I nearly faceplanted into the steel, Marcus' arms wrapped around me and lifted me into position. I smiled awkwardly at the man.

Marcus was the one who fastened me to the table. He ran from one side to another, tenderly moving each limb into place and in a shackle. When he finished, I shimmied to test the restraints and found Marcus' eyes fixed on my moving form. "Sorry."

"If it would be acceptable to you, _topolina,_ " Marcus aired, locking eyes with mine, "may I have the pleasure of turning you?"

The intensity of the look left me speechless. I nodded.

"Brother, you cannot keep her for yourself!" Aro exclaimed. "We have not had such an opportunity to change a member of the guard since our dear Chelsea, and then it was simply you and I. Think of what might happen if all three of us were to bite her!"

"Three?" I squeaked. The idea of having three vampires sucking her blood made her worry. After James had nearly killed her, and Edward had nearly drained her, the idea of having three vampires who hungered from her blood coming so close to killing her was a little nerve-wracking. I realized, for the first time, that they could very well kill me.

Marcus seemed to stiffen. "Brother, you frighten the girl."

"Apologies, Bella," Aro quickly reassured her. "Of course, Marcus should be the first. However, if you'd consent, Caius and I would give you a quick bite."

"Consent?" Caius scoffed. "She should be honoured."

"Brother," Marcus growled. Lips buzzed in a communication too quick to understand.

I bit my lip, stressed at the choice that the brothers seemed to be arguing over.

"We need to do this soon, or our guests may try to interfere," Aro pointed out to the others before turning to me. "Bella, dear one, would you allow all of us to bite you?"

"You won't, er, kill me?" I asked bluntly.

Caius growled, earning a responding one from Marcus. "We have been alive for thousands of years. We have self-control."

I nodded at him and then looked at Marcus, his eyes fixed on me. He seemed the safest of all the brothers, a calm influence on the other two. And he seemed protective of me.

"You'll bite me first?" I asked. "Make sure they don't kill me?"

Marcus brushed the mess of my hair out of my face, nearly tenderly, revealing my neck to his gaze. "I will protect you."

With a deep breath, I nodded. "Then let's do this."

Marcus had no more words of comfort for me, but I didn't need it. Not when his arms braced on either side of my head, offering the privacy of being behind his body and away from his brothers' critical gaze. He was protecting her, even before the bite. I knew he could see my gratitude for the act in my eyes, and it was the first time I saw a small smile lift the corners of his lips.

With that small smile, Marcus bent low and drew his cold nose down the column of my neck, making my heart stutter and breath falter. I could have sworn I felt Marcus kiss my neck before I felt the razor-sharp bite.

The sting hit before the shock. I could feel a light sucking at my neck, and the wound smarted and made me flinch. I was surprised to hear the moan of pleasure coming from Marcus as he fed from me, rocking me through. But when he did that, it seemed to have released him from my blood and he removed himself. When I looked into his intense, newly crimson eyes, the pain started.

Fire started at my neck, traveling and taking over everything. I begged, desperately. I wanted it to stop, but I knew exactly what it was. I'd felt the burning before.

Two additional flames were added to my body, roasting me alive. Both of my ankles had been bitten by the other Volturi kings, and the pain took over. I tried to relieve the pain by moving, but I was chained to the table.

 _Think about something else,_ I pleaded my brain. _Anything but the pain._

I tried to think about Edward, but nothing. I tried to replace the pain with some meditative techniques Charlie tried to teach me while she was in my comatose state, but nothing. Finally, with my desperation, my brain shut down and I passed out.


	2. Chapter 2

Marcus POV

It had all started when that boy had arrived. He had essentially stormed into Volterra, demanding to see all three of them. I sat in the throne room almost all of my days, remembering my Didyme. Her soft expressions, her quiet comfort. Her loving support. I remembered the way she'd come into the throne room with a glow about her, calming all. She was the one person who could get Aro to show the mercy I was in favour of, and the one who could comfort me when mercy was not an option. She was my soul. My heart was empty without her existence, but I was still mated to her. I was pulled, as mates are, to her even in her death. I was pulled to the veil of death. Yet Chelsea's bond-making kept me from following her.

Such were my thoughts as the mind-reader came to the throne room. As I said, I rarely left my seat, but my brothers … they had _their_ mates to see to, their hobbies and experiments. The boy, Edward, was brought in before my brothers could be gathered. Other vampires would have remained silent, waiting for all three brothers to be convened. The mind-reader took a look into my mind, my despair and need to be reunited with my mate, and decided to make his plea without my brothers present.

"Marcus, my mate is dead," he pleaded with me. "Let me die."

His plea earned my attention. I looked at the bonds that stretched from him, searching, hunting for the mating bond. It wasn't hard to find, but not because it was the brightest bond, but because it was incomplete.

When I saw the bond incomplete, the mind-reader roared in agony.

Silly boy. It did not mean the mate had died, merely that she did not know of his existence. It was a strange mating bond, not one between vampires, but …

"She is human." I was not a question, but the mind-reader nodded. "You believed that she would be your mate?"

"She _is_ my mate!" the Cullen boy roared. "And she's dead!"

"Your bond is strong," I gave him the meaningless platitude, "but it is not the same as a mate bond. You can live on."

My brothers came into the room and Aro tried to recruit him. Naturally, a boy with a bond so distraught would refuse. I warned him that the boy needed a stronger hand, but as always, I made no impact.

And then _she_ arrived.

She was strange. She knew of the boy, and yet I could not see her side of the bond. No threads came from her, not one, and yet she had come halfway across the world for the boy. It was intriguing. For the first time, I felt intrigued.

Then a bond erupted, from me to the girl as suddenly as the refreshing feelings – actually feeling – started. A tentative bond, one that indicated the potential in a human to be a mate. My heart flickered with hope.

A new mate?

My bond to Didyme was still strong, even as the new bond wound its way around the girl. Would the pain remain, even as I took a new mate? Was it worth it to even attempt? One thing was certain; Aro had better not kill the girl.

So I let him read me, for the first time in nearly a year, and then proceeded to probe the girl for her bonds. She was a strong one, the opposite of Didyme; she actually stood me down while holding her lover's arm in between us. Where Didyme was compromise and peace, this girl had a deep-seated black-and-white perception of the world that was a clear product of her modern upbringing. In a room of pre-Edwardian beings, it was refreshing.

When I took my brothers to the hallway, away from the potential bond-mate, He brought them into is thinking.

"Caius," Marcus addressed the neglected brother, "I believe we have the answer to whether I would ever mate again."

Aro clapped his shoulder. "It is such good news, right Caius?"

Caius seemed shocked at his declaration, then narrowed his eyes. "The human girl?"

I nodded. "I can see its potential even if I do not feel the mating pull as of yet. When we change her, I have no doubt that I will mate once again."

"With the Cullen's human?" Caius growled. "We risk angering a powerful coven with this."

"Come now," Aro reasoned, "they cannot deny a mating bond, brother, and they cannot refuse to change her since she knows of us. This is but the inevitable conclusion."

I focused on my recollection of the mind-reader's bond with Isabella. "The boy will not let her go easily. I propose changing her immediately, while he recovers from his injury."

His brothers agreed.

Collecting Isabella was a not as Marcus expected. The fiery, challenging woman that seemed at home with the vampires was gone. When they had taken away the confrontational scenario with her former-lover, she turned into a vulnerable little human. She sat on the floor, she stayed silent longer, and she became concerned with her frail mortality. Without the Cullens nearby, Isabella seemed more human than ever before.

And it made him want to change her. Desperately.

Her human frailty was disconcerting to an immortal like him. He had already begun contemplating her place in the castle once she had accepted their mating bond, and to think of her being vulnerable and weak did not sit well.

So now he was waiting.

Isabella lay on a cold table, still as stone and silent as the same. It was unnatural. If I couldn't hear her accelerated heartbeat, I would assume she had died from the bite. She had screamed at the bite, begged and pleaded like a normal human going through her change. But after only an hour she had gone deathly quiet and still. Humans in the midst of change took twelve hours before they completely lost their voices, turning to silent screams and continued writhing. After about twenty-four hours they stopped fighting and simply squirmed. Only in the final few hours did they stop moving, stop mouthing their pleas, stopped everything. Bella had skipped to the final step. And stayed there. For two days.

He hadn't drunk from her long, so it wasn't the amount of venom in her system causing the difference. I licked at my lips again. She had tasted exquisite, but the need to drain her like other humans was not present in his bite. I had taken a sampling of her blood so I could remember her taste, but after a mouthful had released her neck with a lick and sealed the wound.

"You worry for naught, brother," Aro reassured me once again. "She will be magnificent."

"So you believe."

Caius had left a while ago to check on the Cullens, leaving Aro and Marcus to watch what he termed as _'the predictable and pointless exercise of watching nothing for days on end'_. In a way, he was correct. But Aro wanted to observe the product of three actual brothers biting one human, and I wanted to watch for the moment she became the mate she was going to be. I wanted the hole that Didyme had left gone. Caius… Caius just wanted the Cullens gone from his city.

"Let us speculate as to her powers," Aro announced suddenly, obviously becoming bored with my silence. "She can protect herself from others' gifts, but what does it stem from? Is it an isolation, or a protection? Is it a shield or a trait?"

"You want it to be a shield," I told him, resigned to speak despite my desire to observe Isabella in my silence of solitude. "There is no guarantee it will ever be extended to others besides herself, though."

"Oh, but it will!" Aro proclaimed. "Edward's memories show us that Isabella is protective of those around her, to an absurd extent. Even her coven had her attempt to protect them on instance, even though she was a fragile human. I'm certain it will respond to that nature."

"Yet, despite Jane and Alec's human gifts for witchcraft, it barely reflected in their abilities," I pointed out. "They, instead, reflected their reasons for using those gifts. What would that say of Isabella?"

That made Aro think hard, giving me a moment of reprieve to look over my future mate. Her heartrate was the same, her breathing stable. Her skin was starting to reflect her change now, though, turning white and firm, smoothing out all the edges and forming into a more attractive version of the original.

"Her display in the throne room shows more of her nature than Edward's memory," Aro finally asserted. "She wants to belong somewhere … do you believe that could influence her gift?"

"She is to be my mate, Aro," Marcus reminded him. "You ask if she could be more … bond-inclined? The possibility that her gift could compliment mine should not be ignored."

"Of course," Aro nodded. "Yet, we already have so many abilities in our little family. Who could compliment you more than your brothers?"

I shrugged. "Perhaps induced euphoria?"

Aro laughed at that, although I was completely serious. I didn't care about her talents, but I missed the euphoria of having a mate. The passionate, euphoric mating. Then the love … the love that grows while the passion remains. I missed having someone outside of my brothers to care for, to share with, and to spent time with. I missed many things about my mate, Didyme. I only hoped I had another chance, and that Didyme would forgive me for looking for it. The desperation for something, anything, was too much. I didn't want to replace Didyme, but I wanted to have a mate again.

"I believe she will continue to have her mental shield," Aro put forth confidently. "Perhaps extend it to protect more than simply herself. However, there could be more to it. Perhaps she will develop a physical barrier like Renata, or – if it does not extend – control others powers. Think of all the possibilities, brother!"

"Whatever she is, she will be my responsibility, brother," I warned him. I'd seen him risk new recruits in battle, hoping to prompt their talents. I would not risk Isabella, not once she was mated to me. "I will teach her."

"Of course, of course," Aro dismissed me far too readily for my liking, the gleam not leaving his eye. "She will be family, though. Maybe the other wives...?"

I growled ferociously. "I. Will. Train. Her. Sulpicia will not be allowed to turn her into-into whatever she is."

Aro sighed. "Marcus, you must forgive Sulpicia one day. She does not adapt to the world the same way you have, and she really did intend the best for our dear Didyme."

"Didyme was far too kind-hearted to tell you _wife_ to return to Hades where she belongs," I hissed, "and too delicate to take to your wife's … _hobbies_. I will not permit my next mate to become another dagger in your belt."

"Bella could be such a wonderful assassin," Aro sighed.

I clenched my fists, hearing the stony muscles grind together. "Aro, I will allow you to see my memories of her change, but I you must leave now."

"Marcus!" Aro said, offended. "I was merely making an observation!"

"And that observation made me want to tear your throat out with my bare hands," I growled. "I am rather tense at the moment thanks to my mate, Aro. Kindly leave me with her."

Aro looked excitedly at me. "Do you think perhaps the mating bond is being established?"

I drew the bonds into sight and looked at them, just as curious as Aro. The bond was still one-sided, unable to show Isabella's side. Regardless, my own part of the bond was becoming more and more prominent. It wasn't a mating bond yet, but it was gaining strength as he spent more time in her presence.

"Not yet, brother," I told him. "We will see if it occurs before the next twelve hours elapse, or if her heart must stop first."

"I hope for sooner," Aro admitted. "It would be fascinating if the difference in change between the number of bites were dramatic; it would mean much for my research."

"And yet, subtle differences save us from your meddling for a few weeks," I sniped easily. "I'll hope for that happy conclusion."

Aro knew he wasn't wanted, so – after receiving my word that he would be allowed to review the transformation – he bowed out. Leaving only me with the human becoming my mate.

I had kept my distance after biting Isabella, fixing myself to one of the chairs surrounding the room to keep my brothers from becoming more irksome. They hadn't seen me so active in anything since Didyme, but it's not that it was absent from my nature; I did not care for anything but my Didyme, and since her death there was nothing that truly mattered. If our little monarchy collapsed, I would have taken the wilderness as a wild beast and let my instincts rule. Petty squabbles matter little when I accepted pain, discomfort, or death as inevitable or even cathartic in Didyme's absence.

Now that this little human was come to me, I had someone to care for once again. I approached the table where she rested and decisively removed her manacles. My brothers would object, but I did not want her uncomfortable. I carried her still, silent, changing human body through the hallways and brought her to my chambers to rest her on one of the few beds in the castle.

Her body was still soft and fragile, but I could feel the stiffness set in as it affected all the cells in her body. It was spreading like a flush down her body, taking over her exterior first before working its way through her organs to her heart. She was entering the final stage. She was a little early, but he watched steadfastly by her side. Her face evened out and matured, her hair shone, and her muscles spasmed occasionally to try and work through the poison, pointlessly. Her heart was loud to my ears, accelerating as it, in vain, tried to keep beating.

The end was coming faster than anticipated. If I thought about it, it would undoubtedly be because of the multiple venoms fighting within her system, but I was fixed on her stilling breath. Her lungs would undergo a temporary paralysis until the heart stopped pumping blood and the venom was allowed to flow freely, only moments apart. She was close. So close.

I hovered over her, taking in her final human scent, looking her over carefully before fixing my eyes on her fluttering lids. I wanted to be the first thing she saw. I wanted her to be taken by the mating bond the moment she awakened.

Finally, her lungs froze and her breath stopped. Her heart gave a final stutter, having no more blood left to consume within her veins, and was no more. Her heart would beat no more.

It was minutes, excruciating minutes, before I heard her inhale on her own, regaining consciousness. Then, finally, her eyes snapped open and blood red met blood red. The bond I'd been forming with her changed and snapped firmly into place, taking over every other. She was beautiful, and so, so perfect. I felt the pain from Didyme leave me, though my love remained, and was replaced by my gladness to know this remarkable beauty. I wanted her. I wanted her lips on mine, her bite mark on my neck, her body in my bed.

She was my mate, and I wanted her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

 **Bella POV**

I had woken to the burning of everything. There was nothing I could do to make it go away, and so I lay there and tried to accept it instead. I let it do its damage, I let it consume me, and when I accepted it properly there was a part of my brain allocated it and I could keep thinking. I could let it only be a part of my focus.

Instead, I focused on my senses. I wouldn't open my eyes, or couldn't, but I could hear. I could smell. My heart was what entranced me, distracted me from my compartmentalized pain. It seemed to beat louder with every moment, or maybe my sense were getting stronger. It was in a constant state of anxiety, accelerated and pounded.

For the longest time, only my heart occupied me while I burned alive. I was charcoal now, I was sure, but I still couldn't move. I couldn't run. I couldn't do anything but count the beats of my own heart. Then I remembered something Alice once said, about not remembering her human life.

I panicked and tried to pull everything back into my head. The memories were starting to go foggy, and I worked so hard to preserve them. All of them. I focused on Charlie, on Renee. I thought of Jacob, of the Cullens, and of everything the Cullens had ever taught me about their vampire states. Not much, I realized. I knew nothing, like they'd never intended on changing me and kept me in the dark. The clearest memory of the Cullens I had was of Edward, performing his vampire feats in the meadow right before we kissed for the first time.

I occupied myself this way for quite some time, going through the memories again and again every time they tried to fade. Then, voices.

"You worry for naught, brother," she heard through her haze. "She will be magnificent."

It sounded like Aro, but … different, through my haze. I tried to move, but was frozen in my own body as I listened to them talk about me.

"Let us speculate as to her powers. She can protect herself from others' gifts, but what does it stem from? Is it an isolation, or a protection? Is it a shield or a trait?"

"You want it to be a shield."

Now _that_ was a voice very different from what I'd heard as a human. Much lower than Aro's, soft where he was piercing, but with a surety that came from a rumbling. It entranced her. THe burning in her blood reacted to the voice and raged ever more, burning even more. She didn't want to cry out, and she was thankful her body refused to do so.

"There is no guarantee it will ever be extended to others besides herself, though."

"Oh, but it will!" Aro proclaimed. "Edward's memories show us that Isabella is protective of those around her, to an absurd extent. Even her coven had her attempt to protect them on instance, even though she was a fragile human. I'm certain it will respond to that nature."

Hardly flattering. I couldn't protect any of them, no matter how much I tried. I was always the fragile human Bella, targets of vampires, werewolf friends, and my own clumsiness. Always an inconvenience to everyone around me, except when I was the one in charge. I could take care of people, I knew I could. Just … I couldn't care for an immortal, rich, indestructible vampire family. It was part of the freeing feeling they'd planted in me before they'd ripped it away, but I still had never wanted to be their weak link.

"Yet, despite Jane and Alec's human gifts for witchcraft, it barely reflected in their abilities," the voice pointed out, fueling my inner fire. "They, instead, reflected their reasons for using those gifts. What would that say of Isabella?"

"Her display in the throne room shows more of her nature than Edward's memory," Aro finally asserted. "She wants to belong somewhere … do you believe that could influence her gift?"

"She is to be my mate, Aro," the voice said sternly, demanding obedience. Mate? Someone had claimed me? How could they tell if I was human? "You ask if she could be more … bond-inclined? The possibility that her gift could compliment mine should not be ignored."

This was good. Distraction from her pain was valuable, and she prayed they would continue to speak.

"Of course," Aro said "Yet, we already have so many abilities in our little family. Who could compliment you more than your brothers?"

"Perhaps induced euphoria?"

Aro laughed at that, the noise slightly too excited for me. I was burning, and he was laughing. It grated on me.

"I believe she will continue to have her mental shield," Aro put forth confidently. "Perhaps extend it to protect more than simply herself. However, there could be more to it. Perhaps she will develop a physical barrier like Renata, or – if it does not extend – control others powers. Think of all the possibilities, brother!"

"Whatever she is, she will be my responsibility, brother," the voice growled. Aro's brother? Could it be Marcus? "I will teach her."

"Of course, of course," Aro said cheerily. "She will be family, though. Maybe the other wives...?"

A noise so primal it rumbled through her entire being, begging for her submission, came from the brother. It couldn't be Marcus. He wouldn't be so aggressive, would he? He had been slightly forceful with her, but it had been a quiet power. "I. Will. Train. Her. Sulpicia will not be allowed to turn her into-into whatever she is."

Aro sighed. "Marcus, you must forgive Sulpicia one day. She does not adapt to the world the same way you have, and she really did intend the best for our dear Didyme."

Marcus? Didyme? Sulpicia? The women hadn't been introduced before, right? Who were they? _Marcus_ was the one who claimed me?

"Didyme was far too kind-hearted to tell you _wife_ to return to Hades where she belongs," the voice hissed, "and too delicate to take to your wife's … _hobbies_. I will not permit my next mate to become another dagger in your belt."

 _What?_ There was too much going on. I needed context. Why did Marcus want me?

"Bella could be such a wonderful assassin," Aro sighed.

No. No. I would be a horrible assassin. I would tell them to run and since my mind was shielded, Aro would just believe me. I wouldn't kill people. No. I pleaded that Marcus would set him right.

"Aro, I will allow you to see my memories of her change, but I you must leave now."

Yes! Inside I was screaming in relief. Marcus at least sounded angry at the idea. Maybe she could be safe from that gruesome task.

"Marcus!" Aro said, offended. "I was merely making an observation!"

"And that observation made me want to tear your throat out with my bare hands," Marcus growled. "I am rather tense at the moment thanks to my mate, Aro. Kindly leave me with her."

He was staying? My heart beat would have accelerated before, but now only stayed still.

"Do you think perhaps the mating bond is being established?"

"Not yet, brother," Marcus told him. "We will see if it occurs before the next twelve hours elapse, or if her heart must stop first."

"I hope for sooner," Aro admitted. "It would be fascinating if the difference in change between the number of bites were dramatic; it would mean much for my research."

"And yet, subtle differences save us from your meddling for a few weeks," Marcus sounded vicious, more than I'd heard from him in the throne room. Was this what he was like? Would he be horrible to me? "I'll hope for that happy conclusion."

I could hear Aro leaving, hear steps approach me. A sweet scent, weak but getting stronger, of pure masculinity enveloped my nose. Suddenly the pain increased and all thought left as the burning once again overtook me.

Each pump of my heart now increased the pain tenfold. The pain increased, barely cooled, and then a pump of my heart came and increased it once again. I refused to move, refused to make it worse, but it felt like my heart was tugging me up into the air with every thump. I felt cold hands trying to soothe my burning, lifting me into their arms, but it seemed to make the hurt worse.

I was put down on something soft where before there was only harshness. Still, the imperfections made my skin fight to stay on my body.

It could have been hours, ages, decades. I was focused on every thump of pain, every beat of liquid death shooting like sparks through my nervous system. I could hear breathing. There was nothing but the sound of my heartbeat and the fire in my veins.

Just as I thought the pain couldn't get any worse, my heart started pounding furiously and the pain accelerated with it. My eyes burned in their sockets, my lungs couldn't move to take a much-needed breath of cold air, my hands couldn't take to my chest and claw the heart from my chest. I was stuck, frozen and dying. I was sure I was dying.

 _Help! I just want it to stop! Anything, I'll do anything!_

Right before I was about to give up, my heart started slowing. The pain decreased slowly, surely, with each extra second added to that painful beat. Finally a sputter, a coughing beat, and then silence. Plain silence.

My lungs seemed to release the second my heart was, and I gasped a staccato breath. The taste of the air was rich and blessedly full of that masculine fragrance that had comforted me before, during my change. My body reacted instinctively and I felt my eyes open to find the bearer of that wonderful scent, the one that had me tingling all over in want.

Red met red. I could see my own eyes, my face, reflected in his. _Marcus_. The kind brother, the one who'd bitten her first. He was the one who smelt so amazing. Better, my heart lurched amazingly and I felt the desire overtake me completely. I wanted him.

My eyes flicked up and down his body. The fabric was completely obstructing my view, frustrating me. I reached forward quicker than I could even have dreamed of moving and ripping it from his body. Marcus' eyes flickered down before focusing on me with darkening eyes. I drank him in, drank in the the sight of the perfectly chiseled perfection. There were little half-crescent scars every dozen inches, but they only made him look rugged. On Edward, it would have seemed devastating. On his slightly more burly figure, it was like a tattoo – a mark of hidden worldliness.

"Marcus," I breathed, my eyes flickering back up to his. My inner vampire was out, scenting him desperately. It understood what I didn't. "Mates?"

"We are," his lovely cello voice was even more gorgeous now. Even more rounded and beautiful. The slight lilt of a former accent, the different cadence that made him sound completely _Marcus_. "May I kiss you?"

I didn't let him kiss me, because at his voice I had attacked him. His lips were mine to claim. Mine. Mine to pull between my teeth, mine to suck for every little bit of that gorgeous masculine scent. I pulled some of his lovely venom into my mouth, loving the feeling of being scented by _him_ that came from it. Nearly as good was the fact that it felt like pure arousal, like it electrified everything it touched. I needed more.

Without so much as a 'by your leave' I had moved from his mouth and clamped down on his neck. I was truly a vampire, sucking every bit of his precious liquid deep down my through and feeling his precious venom filling my veins. Like I could feel his power and his perfection within me.

I wanted him to mix with me too, so I detached my teeth from him and growled him into biting me. He hovered over my neck, but then thought better of it. He couldn't force me to move, but when he made to do it, I followed. He moved my around and nuzzled the back of my neck before I could feel his teeth clamping around my spine. I gasped and my spine lurched, pressing me more wholly into him. His venom filling me like this, him taking mine, it felt like liquid pleasure shooting through my veins, my nervous system, every thing. It filled my brain and I felt my body start to react on its own.

When he'd finished, he was panting against me, licking my wound and nuzzling it.

"I want you."

"Yessss."


End file.
